Efforts to remove Gulf of Mexico red snapper from federal oversight and give it to Gulf Coast states are gaining momentum and two U.S. Congressmen fished for a short while Friday morning to get a first-hand look at how plentiful the popular gamefish are.

In just about 15 minutes of total fishing time over a reef located in Alabama's permitted reef zone roughly 17 miles southwest of Perdido Pass, Southwest Alabama Congressman Bradley Byrne, Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise and several others were able to catch a limit of red snapper.

Byrne said he is committed to taking management of our fishery back from the federal government because its management strategy hasn't worked.

That failure has put people out of business and has done nothing but pit commercial fishermen versus recreational fishermen, and all based on what he called "erroneous data."

Byrne added that the trip will allow Scalise and him to go back to Washington and tell their colleagues of their real-world experience catching red snapper.

They were able to keep the fish thanks to Reel Surprise Charters Randy Boggs' participation in a headboat pilot program in which 17 such Gulf vessels have been allotted a share of the recreational red snapper sector's annual quota based on their past landings.

When the headboat's quota is caught, they can no longer legally catch and keep red snapper outside of the federally sanctioned red snapper season. At only nine days, this year's season is the shortest federal red snapper season ever.

The ever-decreasing season lengths combined with continued controversy over federal fishery management data-collection procedures and resulting model calculations has gained enough momentum to prompt Byrne and other members of the House Natural Resources Committee to promote the idea of moving management of red snapper and other reef fish to the state level.

To do that, Byrne said language shifting responsibility would have to be added to the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the law that dictates parameters of all fisheries management in federal water.

The act is up for reauthorization this year and Byrne said language to shift management responsibility, which would include the recreational, charter for-hire and commercial sectors, is expected to be added to the draft reauthorization act during committee hearings next week.

Byrne and Scalise agreed that removing federal control of management of those fisheries would "breathe new life" into the Gulf's fishing communities.

Byrne specifically mentioned the possibility of shifting stock assessment and allocation responsibilities to the Gulf States Fishery Management Commission.

The commission is comprised of the five marine resources directors in each coastal state, along with one state legislator and one citizen representative from each state, said Alabama's Marine Resources Director Chris Blankenship, who contributed to the red snapper limit.

"The Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission is more state centric than the National Marine Fisheries Service," Blankenship said. "If the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission had more involvement in the stock assessment for red snapper, I feel that our state interests and state data would be more prevalent in the assessments."

He added that Alabama is ready to take on the additional responsibility of managing the reef-fish complex off its coast.

"I am very encouraged to have two Congressmen out in the Alabama reef zones catching red snapper. We have a great fishery here and it is important for them to see that and to be able to take that message back to Washington," Blankenship said. "I think both Congressman Byrne and Congressman Scalise are great advocates for more state control of this valuable fishery.

"Alabama is willing and able to totally manage this fishery off the coast of Alabama out to the 200-mile limit. I hope we can get there in the future with the help of our congressional delegation."

He added that a vital part of the state's efforts to better manage red snapper begins with the opening of Florida's red snapper season in its state water on Saturday.

The new regulation requires the captain or owner of a charter or private vessel with red snapper on board to report all red snapper kept and discarded dead prior to landing in Alabama regardless of where fish are caught.

"It is imperative for MRD to get the true amount of red snapper that are landed in Alabama," Blankenship said. "With this information we can better manage this fishery. If we can have more confidence in the landings numbers that will help reduce the buffer that is taken off the top of this fishery by NMFS."

Additional information required to be reported includes vessel registration, type of vessel (private or charter), county of landing (when seafood is transferred from a vessel to land or to a pier, dock, bulkhead attached to land or when a vessel is hauled onto land via a trailer) and number of anglers.

Only one report is required per vessel trip, and anglers can provide details via a smartphone app available under "Outdoor Alabama" in the iTunes or Google Play app stores, online at www.outdooralabama.com, by telephone at 1-844-REDSNAP (1-844-733-7627) or by paper forms available at select coastal public boat launches.